XIII - Death

[Scherezade deWinter]

~ Pre Gulag

Nessarose lay on the cold ground of the tunnels beneath the Forbidden Temple on Endelaan. Arms spread to her sides, her eyes glowed in the dim light, staring at the ceiling. She had tried to move earlier, but the poison coursing through her veins kept her from it. She had attempted to call on the Force, to rid herself of it, thoughts of her other half and their children sharpening her minds helping her remain conscious and alert even when all else failed.

Footsteps came from her left. All she could do was try to look in the general direction, but there was nothing to greet her other than another pair of eyes that glowed stronger than hers, making the facial features of the person completely blurred.

"You show more strength than the few I have visited prior to you. By all I know, you ought to be dreaming right now," the person said. Nessaose could make out it was a female voice, timeless. Her heart skipped a beat as thoughts turned to her ancestors, Ashmedai and Bodicea. "I am not them," the voice said, and Nessarose wished she had enough muscle control to groan. It was very rude to enter people's minds and read their thoughts, and much of her early years in existence had been spent on keeping people out of hers.

So it wasn't even going to be telepathy, she sighed internally. Just think. And the person would maybe, hopefully, answer. Who else had the power to perform such a deed if not for them? Even death was not a permanent thing with those two. "You have neglected the other side of your family," the voice answered her thoughts, "but I am benevolent, and it shall be forgiven. For now."

Nessarose managed a blink.

"Dark times are coming, child of my blood. And neither you nor those I find of interest have the power to properly see them through." Nessa scoffed on the inside. The whole dark times crap was getting so bloody old. She was sure she'd heard it at least two dozen times in the last year alone. "Your mother heeded my words with more care than this." But Nessarose was not Shery. She'd never been. And right now, she had half a mind to kill whoever had done this to her and go check on some other family members. Maybe kill them too in the process.

So anyway, what now? Was she going to hear more of this verbal diarrhea before she was either killed or let go? The woman chuckled. "You take too much after your god father. If I hadn't known better I might have mistaken you for a child of his, regardless of your paramour." Nessa imagined herself puking in her mouth. A little.

"You shall be preserved, Nessarose deWinter. The next few centuries will pass with the beat of a heart, and you will return to this existence once it is safe to do so." Wait, WHAT?! No. No no no no. Nessa wanted so badly to shake her head. She didn't wanna wake up in some random future. What about Dio? And her parents? Her siblings? Her children! "Sacrifices must be made, child of my blood. I sacrified many of mine so that I could be here." There was no more groaning. No more sighing. No more puke in her mouth. Inside of her head, Nessarose was screaming.

"Planets will drop and planets will rise, planets will move across the galactic map. But my blood shall never die. Those I have chosen will make sure of that. And perhaps, child of my blood, we shall meet again in the future."

Nessarose's scream ripped through the very air of the cavern.


~ Post-Gulag: some planet somewhere, that is not Endelaan

It was the first thing she heard - herself screaming. Her eyes snapped open and she sat up, her skin expecting the soft touch of her bed sheets. Instead there was sand. Cold, sharp. She shut her mouth and jumped into a crouch, ignoring the pain signals from her body. The place seemed unfamiliar. No, it didn't seem... It was. She stared, her hands going for her belt, where her usual arsenal of weapons... Well, her lightsaber was there. Her whip was not, and neither were her blasters or daggers.

She managed to straghten up exactly for a moment ebfore dropping to her knees again. Her mind swirled as lists of problems began to form in it, but there was one that rose above all, kicking the rest of them down.

Nessarose was hungry.

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

Alexandra had been exploring the planet for really no more reason than she was bored out of her mind and wanted to just separate herself from the normal life that she encountered on a daily basis now. The sand under her was a calming experience to be over but there was now something very curious that her ears had led her towards. On her knees and in the middle of no where was a woman who had the looks and the feeling of a sensitive, but as to what affinity that sensitivity held Alexandra could not be sure. With a shrug she stepped forward and called out to the woman kneeling there, her own sabers hidden beneath the pure white robes she wore, unable to be seen until summoned to her hands. "Hey you, Everything ok?" [member="Nessarose deWinter"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

The white of the stranger's robes swam in her eyes, the green glow of them strengthening in a flash. What words she had spoken did not register. There was but one thing as Nessa's senses took over, savoring the taste through the Force. Yesssss. This was what she needed - someone apt with the Force. Food. Te energies would sustain her for long enough to control everything else that stormed beneath the surface, masked by the raging starvation as her very soul demanded the nourishment.

She did not touch her saber. She had no need for it.

Nessarose's hand shot forward as she expanded her presence with the Force, trying to latch on to the other person, the very need to drain her of her life's essence beating through her body with the soft rhythm of her heart.


[member="Alexandra Cinthra"]

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

ALexandra's body froze for a moment as the woman reached out and moments later latched onto her very life essence. She had been in contact with enough force users, especially those that use these kinds of techniques, to know what was happening and for a moment a bit of fear took hold at the wonder at how strong this woman could be. Then she recovered, just long enough to she herself close what distance she could and instead of even pulling on her sabers send a concentrated wave of force energy at the woman before attempting to tackle her. She had no idea how much time she had to do this, but there had to be something she had to do to stop it, and acting quickly was the best course of action.

[member="Nessarose deWinter"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

A sip. It had been only a tiny sip. but those few drops the Sith Sorceress had managed before the other one protected herself were enough to fuel her a little bit. No longer was she on her knees, but on her feet, her body levitated ever so slightly by the Force. She looked at the other woman, and the white no longer swirled in her eyes. The corners of the Sith's lips curled into a wicked smile, the hunger ever so apparent on her face.

"More of this..." she hissed, and her voice, despite being raw, managed to sound both serpentine and sweet all at once.

[member="Alexandra Cinthra"]

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

Shock found her eyes once more at the woman's abilities to strive on such a quick sip of Alexandra's energy. Her feet feel into a ready stance, sabers still hidden though as she began to dig deep for the energy she knew she would need, the golden flecks growing in number and swirling in her pupils as she began to consume her own fear and anger for the power she would need, but also protecting it from being used by the woman infront of her. That was what she did best, she had mastered her own fear and now that fear would fuel her without heed. "Who are you, and why are you here..." [member="Nessarose deWinter"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

A͎͙w̶̺̙̭̯á̪̪͉̯̼͎k̘̬̯̺̣ę̜​

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Where am I?​

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A͎͙w̶̺̙̭̯á̪̪͉̯̼͎k̘̬̯̺̣ę̜​

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What is going on?​

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A͎͙w̶̺̙̭̯á̪̪͉̯̼͎k̘̬̯̺̣ę̜​

Daichi awoke.

There was darkness. Nothing to be seen. Just an endless void. An all consuming darkness. There was nothing for him to grasp at.

And then his eyes opened. He sat up suddenly, awake in the desert sands. Sands. When.. His pale blue gaze looked around, more then confused. When did he get here? How did he get here? Where.. [member="Alexandra Cinthra"] . He was with here last. Where is she? Through the force he reached out, feeling, trying to find her. It wasn't long until he did, but.. He felt something else. Something hungry.

[member="Nessarose deWinter"] . He did not know her, did not even know what it could be, only that he could feel the hunger. He moved quickly, rushing to find them both, and it didn't take long. He stopped for a moment, blinking at the scene. Two females, fighting over.. Something. What, he wasn't sure, but it didn't take long for him to act. He leapt over, landing in between the two. At the same moment, both hands of his came out, sending a blast of the Force just strong enough to knock them both back.

 

[Onrai]

"You know, ladies..." A voice familiar to Alex(and to a degree, Nessa) would find familiar perked up, the invisibility of the White Current disintegrating as she smiled. "I don't appreciate the both of you getting right to it and leaving me out of the fun." She grinned, her darkened lips smiling as she stepped forward. "I think I know a way to adequately handle this situation, but I will need the two of you willing to work together in order to get it to work."

If Nessa was like a leech, draining energy from anything or anyone she touched, perhaps one of the energy crystals Circe had made would satiate her for a more extended period of time.

[member="Alexandra Cinthra"] [member="Nessarose deWinter"]

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

Alexandra's focus was first broken by the all too familiar voice of a certain Sith that now used a clone of her own being, which then left her shocked even more so when Daichi came out into the scene and before she could even react she was sent off her feet and hard on her back as the wave of force energy hit her in the chest. She lay there for a few moments though as her head tried to compensate for what in the stars had just happened and if she was even in reality right now and not a dream. Slowly her vision cleared and she propped herself up on her hands to see all three of them there, this was indeed all real.

[member="Enigma"] [member="Daichi"] [member="Nessarose deWinter"]

 

[Cameron Centurion]

In his travels throughout the galaxy, the Deceiver had seen...many things. The internal machinations of the galaxy's various sentients had long ceased to be of interest to the Sith Lord. So...when he sensed the rapid rippling of the Force on the random planet he'd found himself on, Cameron developed little interest. However, when the all-too-familiar sensation of an individual from the somewhat distant past touched his mind, his silver-green gaze turned abruptly to the horizon.

"Aesir?"

Cameron narrowed his eyes for but a brief moment before allowing a thin smile to slide across his features. "We are leaving." The words vanished into the air as the Sith Lord's dark blue and gray cloak rustled behind him. The trek across the planet's landscape was brief as the Nemesis arrived near to the group of force users already...stirring for whatever reason.

Once the retrofitted AlAT/i had touched down, Cameron immediately emerged down a loading ramp, alone. He left the featureless gray mask that he normally wore amidst the followers of Moross in a specially designed pocket within the folds of his cloak. Tattoos adorning his exposed upper body shifted slightly with the movements of his body as he made casual, measured pace towards the presence of [member="Nessarose deWinter"].

Arriving within earshot, the Sith Lord wholy ignored the presence of other individuals as his silver-green gaze found the matching gaze of his relative. In that instant, his thoughts drifted momentarily to another member of her family. A woman he had lost touch with. A daughter he had feared lost before the Gulag. Pushing the thoughts aside, Cameron clasped his hands behind his back. "Nessarose..." He'd not seen most of the 'confrontation', so he was unsure as to what exactly was occurring.

Not that it mattered.

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

The woman in white was gathering her power. The cruel smile on Nessarose's soft lips never wavered. Good! More power meant easier for her to feed on, to satisfy her hunger on. She prepared as well, gathering the Force around her, the very tendrils and ebbs of the Darkside tickling her beheath her skin, causing every hair on her body to stand with sadistic pleasure.

And then came the question.

Who was she?

The Sith Sorceress blinked, the momentary confusion all too aparant on her face. Who was she? "I am war," she said, her voice deep and rich as wine, purring with the softness of a kitten, "I am pain." More. Her very existence demanded more! Past titles flashed in her memories. Sorceress. Seer. Necromancer. Beastmaster. Queen. Sith. Above all, Sith.

It was that thought that caused her body to reflect on pure instincts, bringing out the Force Shield that protected her from being sent tumbling back, causing her to take a single yet sure step backwards instead.

And another one joined. The teenager bared her teeth. She knew she had faced odds worse than this before, though specifics refused to come to mind. But she knew what she could do. Their lives were forfeit. Their essence belonged to her.

But then came the voice.

She turned her head, keeping all her senses sharp as her eyes fell on the tall man. She knew him. Knew him?

Her senses darted beneath the grounds, underneath the sounds they all stood on. The man... Was currently a distraction. She had to feed, and it was not him she desired. Down and down she darted with her presence, finding the bones of old. No world could claim a lack of corpses, and those she called forth, all she found. Skeletal remains of times forgotten, rising with every moment from beneath the surface to above.

[member="Cameron Centurion"] [member="Alexandra Cinthra"] [member="Enigma"] [member="Daichi"]

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

Alexandra cursed and let herself be consumed in the fear she held suppressed, eyes pure golden now, any trace of the silver iris' vanishing as she stared among those here. Her hands found her sabers and ignited in two silver beams that scorched the ground as she held them pointed down at her sides. 'Great, this Sith was ready now, and now Daichi and Savan are here... and who ever the last nerf herder is, i do hope hes not hostile...' The words sounded within her head, the voice of Hel speaking them as Alexandra's conscious debated with the other half on what action to take, while the two debated though Alexandra's body remained ready for what ever was to come and to react on a moment's notice.

[member="Daichi"] [member="Enigma"] [member="Nessarose deWinter"] [member="Cameron Centurion"]

 

[Darth Ferus]

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R̷̨͎í̬̫͟s͞͏̢͔̤̟e̤̟͜​

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She called upon the dead.​

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R̷̨͎í̬̫͟s͞͏̢͔̤̟e̤̟͜​

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I can't accept that. The dead.​

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R̶̟̰̗̳͕̮̗̹̠͓̳̹ͯ̽͌ͪ̚͜͞͞I̢͖̙̝̗͓̘̼̖̱͖̘͎̦͙̟̪̩̮̮ͥ̅ͯ͆̇̊ͮͩ̋̃ͬͫ͛̓͟͞͝͝S̴̨̹͇̩̺͕ͭ̆̓̽̅ͪ̽ͥ͒ͤ̆̈́͂̃̆͠E̛̓̉̈̅ͣ̂̔ͥ̈́ͥ͌ͦͪ́̚̚̚҉̢͔̝͉̟̫͕͔̲̫̟͎​

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Daichi himself reached into the ground. [member="Nessarose deWinter"] was not the only one who could revive the dead, and he would be sure this would not become one sided. He moved in front of [member="Alexandra Cinthra"] , protective. Odd, why would.. It clicked. He remembered it again. The short lasp of memories after his apperence here quickly changed.

With bth hands in front of him he stared at the female. "Stand down."

For now, he ignored both other people. He had to.

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron held [member="Nessarose deWinter"]'s gaze until he sensed movement beneath the surface. He spared a brief glance downwards before laughing slightly to himself and looking back up at Nessarose. The Sith Lord did not exactly have time for games with the child. Well, that was incorrect. His time was definitely his own, but he certainly did not have the patience for Nessarose and her little passenger.

Undeterred by the presence of any others, Cameron stepped forward casually, approaching Nessarose. "Or perhaps I'm speaking to the Arduer." If he was, Cameron knew all too well that any action taken here would be fed upon and turned against all of them. The only way that Cameron had found to beat the Arduer, was to give it what it needed, and he had a feeling that the uninitiated around them were about to do just that. "If so, hurry up and feast on your guests so that I might have a conversation with my dear goddaughter."

A conversation that would start with Nessarose explaining just why she thought it was in any way her right to bring his apprentice back to life without his permission.

[member="Daichi"] | [member="Enigma"] | [member="Alexandra Cinthra"]

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

She fears me, a small voice inside of her mind announced as the teenager stared at the white haired one. Grinning, she fed upon it, the strength gained causing her presence and power to extend even further. Ignoring the man, the angel of death looked at the corpses she'd called upon, now completely above the ground, surrounding the people who had gathered at this scene. He wanted her to stand down.

"Nope," she said with an ear to ear grin. As the words were spoken, the skeletons all attacked [member="Daichi"] , [member="Alexandra Cinthra"] , and [member="Enigma"] .

Turning to the man who had spoken to her, asked whom he was speaking to. The words drew stirs of memories up, but they were quelled quickly as her mind returned to the starving creature that she was. Neither Nessarose herself nor her little parasite were the ones at work; the silence of several centuries however, demanded nourishment in order to live. demanded satisfaction for control. And above all, it wrestled with the need to know where she was, what she was doing, and who the hell she even was.

Yet for now, above all of these, was merely the hunger.

Again her hand came up as her drain momentarily shifted focus from the other three to him, and she attempted to feed herself off on him.

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

 

[Alexandra Feanor]

Alexandra did not fear the woman, no she feared death, she feared Vornskr, and she feared herself. And she had locked these fears away not for others to use but for she herself to draw power from, and once consumed she cut off all links to herself and consumed her body in the very essence of her fear as she charged the first skeleton without heed of danger, blades coming down on it as she enhanced her speed and strength. It was a moment of pure fury she was acting on, pushing her body to its limit as she moved fluidly and removed what threats came to her. It was not easy victories though, skeletons tearing at her robes and the light fiber armor under them, one catching her back once through the armor.

[member="Nessarose deWinter"] [member="Cameron Centurion"] [member="Enigma"] [member="Daichi"]

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Cameron...actually didn't care if [member="Nessarose deWinter"] 'stood down'. He actually just wanted her to finish whatever ridiculousness she was engaged in so they could move on. However, a part of him had expected her to eventually shift her attentions in his direction. Unfortunately for whoever was controlling the girl's body, Cameron had known her since the day of her birth. He had watched her develop as both a woman and a Sith. Many of the experiences Nessarose had, Cameron was a part of. Last but not least...he had taught her a great deal. The young girl had always been his favorite amongst the children of that particular family, their relationship closer than any of the others.

At least...that had been until her step-sister Elora was born, but Cameron forced those thoughts from his mind for the time being. For a moment, it would appear as if Nessarose was indeed able to drain the Sith Lord's energy and very presence. Collapsing to a single knee in faux distress, a deep, rumbling laugh began to echo across the sandy plains as he raised his head to smile at the girl. The combating of the effort mostly required Cameron to diminish his presence to an almost infinitesimal size...something nearly impossible to sense let alone draw upon courtesy of Art of the Small. Immediately, the Sith Lord followed that by forcing his presence to expand rapidly and suddenly.

Enough. The intoned command was spoken directly into the girl's mind as the Sith Lord attempted to brute force the rest of his presence into the girl's mind, feeding her clear images of her past. Playing with Cameron as a child. Training with him as an adolescent. Having conversations about her future and her efforts to secure Endelaan as an adult. Family will always prevail. The single most, well, moving concept that he'd ever truly seen Nessarose take to - despite continuous loss and absence of those she cared for.

If that didn't work, of course, there was always Plan B. Which stood for 'Bust Em'.

 

[Onrai]

[member="Alexandra Cinthra"] [member="Daichi"] [member="Nessarose deWinter"] [member="Cameron Centurion"]

"Korriban Zombies." Of the many types of undead that existed throughout the galaxy, Circe recollected that ones raised through Sith sorcery, who could still function even if reduced to bone, were quite rare. Then again, Nessa did seem like someone with far more capabilities in Sith SOrcery than the majority of Sith or Dark Jedi she'd encountered - perhaps she would be most helpful. "Nessa... Stand down. I'd hate to ruin such perfectly good skeletons."

It wouldn't be that hard to escape them, really - all that was needed was a heavy object capable of reducing the bones to powder. But she didn't have that right now.

"There's a greater purpose for you."

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

A look of clear confusion spread on the girl's face as her target's presence shrank. Yes, it was something she had aimed for, but that all too familiar sense of being filled with his life's force was lacking. She had no time to analyze that information though, before he expanded again, and the bomb of memories flooded her mind.

Images flashed by her eyes again and she groaned with the pain of their remembrance. Her mind fought her, trying to tuck them back into the drawers in which they were placed to be forgotten. Good memories, memories of times of innocence and preparation for the chaos that was to follow.

Family will always prevail.

Nessarose sank to her knees, her breathing hard, the stress on her mind all too apparent on her body now.

Someone else was trying to reach her, pushing her another step toward the edge. There was just too much to remember now. And why... And where... And...

Nessarose leaned forward on her arms and opened her mouth, letting the most powerful Force Scream that she could muster come out, throwing all her pain and confusion into the mixture.

[member="Enigma"] [member="Cameron Centurion"]

 

[Fallon deWinter]

* Pre Gulag *

Tick tock. Tick tock. The old clock was so loud, it gave her a headache. She already had one, to be honest but the sounds only made it worse. Her faithful dogs came to her aid but she barely acknowledged them while her head leaned back on the couch.

"Fallon," a voice suddenly called to her, making her head jerk. She knew that voice always. And while somewhere in the back of her mind, she was reminded it wasn't real, that he wasn't here. Fallie didn't listen to it as she rose to her feet. "Fallie!" The voice spoke again. Her gaze softened as she searched for his face. But he wasn't there.

It seemed like it was coming from outside.

The deWinter female walked into the night, leaving her two pets in the house. Still drunk, she could hear him calling to her over and over and just followed. She didn't notice or hear anything. There was just John.

When she realized her surroundings again, she was on top of the 500 Republic apartments. Blinking, she looked around. "John?" She called out into the night.

No reply.

"John! Answer me!" Fallon yelled into the night. Nothing. Her head turned left and then right. There was nothing there. Then her green-brown gaze darted forward. Just at the edge of the building, more lighting. She moved over to it. It was so high to the ground. "John, please..." she whispered. No reply. Then suddenly, the alcohol still inside her system provided clarity. Memories rushed through her mind. Her childhood, her father, her evil mother, memories of her John, the pregnancy, Nessarose, the Force. And suddenly, as if she realized it was all useless. A failure. Someone like who, someone once so strong and capable to stand on her own two feet had been completely taken over by a man.

That was not Fallon deWinter. She wasn't faithful, she didn't know what love really was. She was free once. She did what she wanted, when she wanted. She didn't care about others. It was always all about her. But love had changed her. Ruined her.

Before she realized it, the deWinter female was standing up on the ledge. She looked down again but her thoughts didn't let her focus too much on it. "This isn't me," she quietly whispered. "This was never supposed to me."

An image of John flashed before her eyes once more and she smiled ever so slightly. "I love you," she quietly said into the air. It was true. The girl who didn't know who love really was did love. And it was just that one time. It completely took her over.

Then took a deep breath before she took her step.

* Post-Gulag; Coruscant *

Force worked in mysterious ways. When all had perished, one cockroach did remain in the galaxy. Somehow he had survived, outlived them all. And just as he had promised them, he had outlived them all to have the last laugh.

Centuries after the name deWinter had no longer been as known as it used to be, Jonathan deWinter had continued in his ways. On one such night, he fathered a child. Eyes green as in the deWinter line, light hair. He had been on his way before he had seen any of it and the woman was left with a child to raise.

But this child began to realize things early. When she spoke, her first word had been "Fall-on", when her mother first began to tell her about her father, she knew who it was before the woman had said anything.

Coruscanti born and raised, the child displayed the capacity for using the Force. Her mother tended to it quickly and gave her away to a teacher. In the beginning a Jedi trained her but in time, even the Master realized there was darkness within the child. She knew it too in time. He had tried to get rid of it but when he couldn't, he banished her from his side.

***​

In the darkness of the night, the intense green eyes came to life. A scream woke her from her sleep but as soon as she caught her bearings, Fallon knew it wasn't anywhere near her.

For a moment more, she lay in the darkness before a face pierced through her mind. Abruptly, she sat up on the bed and said: "Nessa." It had rushed into her mind, a memory of another life but suddenly, it felt vivid as it took place in this one.